Unbreakable Will
by LoneWolfLeonhart
Summary: The hands of fate shifted ever so slightly. Suffering from a deep wound from Thymilph, Kamina's life as a pilot and a leader are tested. Can he ever recover from damage to both body and mind? Yoko/Kamina  Bear with me, trying to remember line breaks
1. Chapter 1

He let out a howl of pain, recoiling on the table he was forced onto. Several hands came to hold him down, trying to soothe him enough to get anything done. So far, it wasn't working at all. He kicked and flailed, foot swinging into Kittan's face and sending him sprawling backwards. Normally wise words would flow from the blonde's mouth but he kept them at bay, rubbing his jaw before grabbing hold of the man's leg once more.

Dayakka ran into the room, holding a few vials. "These were all I could find but they're all for Beastmen. If we use any of them he could be out for weeks. Hell, they might even kill him."

"Then just use a quarter of it! A low dosage," Kittan yelled, narrowly dodging the heel of his friend's foot again. "We just need him to settle down long enough that we can sow him up."

"A-alright…," Dayakka stammered, taking the sterile syringe and pressing it into the man's right arm. He pressed the plunger down enough for a quick shot and the flailing died down quickly. "I think it worked."

"I think it worked a bit too quickly… you gave him too much." The words fadded into muffled whispers as the tranquilizer kicked in. His flailing stopped and he laid still on the table, sleeping as soundly as one could in a situation such as his. With sleep upon him, the pain faded and granted him a short reprieve.

Eyes slid open slowly, he could barely focus on the flickering light in the slate gray room but he realized he was comfortable and that was enough. Lifting his arm to press against his forehead, he brushed some of the blue hair out of his face with a sigh. He thought he had died or at least felt that way with all the blood that surrounded him in that cockpit. It was a scary thing to face, knowing that it was just a few moments away but he endured none the less. "That's what a man does. Survive the unsurvivable," he said with a chuckle. His voice was hoarse and raspy, but that was to be expected.

Things slowly began to sink in as his mind un-muddled itself. The pain in his chest, the throbbing over his eye and an odd feeling on his left arm. Sitting up in the bed, he looked down to the bandages that surrounded his midsection. His vision finally unmuddled completely and he caught sight of something that froze the blood in his veins.

There was an absence where his left arm used to be.

Letting out a scream of surpise, agony, pain… a mixture of so many thing, Kamina clenched his shoulder where the appendage suddenly ended. He howled once more, tears glistening his cheeks as the overwhelming pain hit all at once. The wound from Thymilph's spear had hurt him deeper than he thought. Standing up suddenly, he stumbled to the door and forced it open before dropping into the hall where several members of Team Gurren were there to grab him. "What are you doing out of bed!"

The yelling slowed down, silent tears streaming down his face. He didn't want to show weakness in front of people. Even by himself it was disheartening. Forcing everything back, the raspy voice came again questioning. "Where is my arm?"

Dayakka wrapped an arm around Kamina's waist and hoisted him back to his feet. With a long frown on his face, he attempted to explain. "When Thymilph hit you, the damage went deep along your body. You're lucky you even survived but… the wounds and damage to your arm was too much. It was either it or you and we didn't want to lose you."

Kamina remained silent, looking at the absence at his side. He didn't want to believe his eyes, and thus… wouldn't. "I need to see it myself."

"You need to get back to bed. You haven't recovered fully."

Looking down at his torso again he saw the bandages that altered from wrapping around his midsection and saw them roll all the way up to his mid-chest, wrapped around his shoulder to cover the wound where his arm once resided. He nodded slowly, unable to fight against the fact of the matter. The Invincible Kamina had been maimed severely and now he was just as mortal as anyone else. Dayakka slowly directed him back into his room and sat Kamina down on the edge of the bed. Expecting him to lay down, he stood silently as Kamina hung his head and sat there.

"It's going to be alright, Kamina. You survived and we got the Dai-Gurren. You're a hero!" He forced a wide smile, trying to invoke some kind of reaction but being unable to do so. The long frown quickly returned as no response could be drawn from Kamina. "I can go get Yoko or Simon? Maybe the—"

"Yeah. Go get them for me." Kamina looked up, forcing a grin as well. "My soul brother must be worse off than me, huh?" He laughed a bit, rising to his feet once more. "And Yoko…" Nodding slowly, he looked up to Dayakka. "Bring them here, will you?"

Dayakka nodded and headed out of the room eagerly. The second he swung down the hall Kamina peaked his head out and looked after him. The grin fell from his features and that look of pain and distress returned. He headed the other way, turning into the bowels of this unknown ship with only one destination in mind and no real way to reach it but that didn't bother him. He had to figure out one thing for himself.

Wandering for what felt like hours, he could hear his name being yelled by a plethora of voices around him. Ducking out of sight or hiding in a different room, the stealth paid off as he finally found what he was looking for. Sitting next to the King Kittan next to a machine spitting out spare parts. He ignored everything and sprinted up to Gurren, looking at that big mug and feeling a smile come to his face.

Yoko sprinted into the repair bay, catching sight of Gurren's open mouth and the blue-haired man inside. Rossiu and Simon soon followed, dark violet bags underneath Simon's eyes. The three of them walked slowly up to the large machine until the shadows in the cockpit cleared by the interface booting up and they saw the man inside.

Simon seemed to look even gaunter if it were possible at the sight of his brother. The man sat helplessly in his chair, one hand on the controls of Gurren while he stared at the left. His head turned upon hearing the three of them approached and he looked forward at them.

Rossiu took a step back, eyes wide at the battered man. A long stitched scar slid down the man's face, right above his left eyebrow and down to his cheek. His bandages were taking a shade of red as he squirmed in the seat, defeated by his new handicap.

Yoko kept walking, getting on the automated lift in front of Gurren and rising up until she could walk up to Kamina. She looked at him, seeing the tears that streaked his face and the redness of his eyes. Looking at the man who couldn't be defeated look so utterly helpless as the blue screens around him lit up red. A long black line through a rather cartoonish display of Kamina's face. Yoko moved up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing him close to her. He dropped the controls on his right and wrapped an arm around her and stifled his pain for the warmth that she granted.

It had only been eight days, but it had felt like a lifetime.


	2. Chapter 2

Kamina recovered quickly because he was forced to. Suddenly there were more Thymilphs threatening them. There was the Spiral King's daughter and there was… no time for him to hate himself and feel weak. But still, his stomach rolled every time he saw himself in a mirror. The stitches came out a few days after he woke up and a long white scar stretched from his brow down to his chest and vanished under thick white bandages. By a miracle, as Dayakka had said, he had kept his left eye. He had to stop himself from laughing at the man as he broke the news. Miracles? Kamina didn't think he believed in them anymore.

Kamina sat in the cockpit of Gurren as Leeron went through repairs on it's outside. Rossiu had ran Gurren through the wringer in some fights. It made him scowl at 'the forehead' but he didn't speak. He… couldn't. Couldn't speak, couldn't eat. Hell, he really couldn't do much in his current state. There was nothing wrong with him (hah) physically but mentally? Mentally he was miles away. Yoko came to his room or found him in the cockpit here and there but she went off time after time as he waved her off. It was hard to look at her… hard to look at Simon, who needed his reassurance. The kid looked worse than he did and it was tough to watch him spiral but the weird haired girl with pluses in her eyes was bringing him to. She was handy to have around.

"So, Kamina," Leeron said, spinning to the open cockpit in a large harness that let him maneuver around the gunmen easily. He flipped his goggles up, black soot clinging to his face except for the wide circles around his eyes. They sparkled as they looked upon Kamina, a smile curling to his lips. "You're going to have to get out of this rut sooner or later. Can I show you something?"

Kamina looked at him warily before releasing the right handle and walking past the red screens blaring at him, announcing his ineptitude to everyone in hearing distance. He gave a defeated shrug before shoving a foot onto one of the steel bars of the harness and grabbing at the leather, completely ignoring the metal lift inches away. Leeron stared at him with a look of disbelief and simply laughed. "You're still in there somewhere, eh? Same old idiot, but I suppose that's what I love about you." He mockingly licked his lips, causing Kamina to scowl and drop back down.

He got on the lift and lowered as Leeron dropped down next to him and unbuckled the harness. "You played with a gun before, right?"

He nodded. _Once, _he thought. _I think I almost shot myself. Doesn't work like a sword or a hammer._

"We're going to get you into practice. As of right now, " Leeron paused, trying to think of a delicate way of putting it to not offend Kamina, "You're not exactly able to pilot a gunmen. But that's alright, because we're working on it." He waved his hands frantically as Kamina's face soured. Leeron settled as Kamina let out a sigh and nodded. "So I'm going to have Yoko give you some shooting lessons and design a nice rifle for you that you can use one handed."

Kamina's eyes narrowed, that wary look coming to his features again. He waved his right arm around rather uselessly before pointing at him and making a gun out of his hand. He mock fired and stumbled backwards, comically waving his arm like a wet noodle.

"Oh, there's only a lot of recoil on her rifle because she's tiny. Plus, her boobs absorb most of the shock." He poked at Kamina playfully, smile creeping to his face again. "You're a bit more sturdy. And breastless, thank god."

Kamina swiped at his hand and the two kept walking until they were outside in the sun. Kamina rose a hand over his eyes and looked out to the sky. It was still stunning to look at as puffy white clouds floated by. He lifted his arm into the air and reached up, looking for a ceiling but finding none. It was rather comforting in a Kamina-way. As he looked back down, he saw Yoko standing across from them with a smile on her face. "Hey, Kamina." The smile was genuine, the first he had seen on her in a long time.

He returned it, having wanted to spend some time with her for a while. Giving her the cold shoulder was rather rude and completely unmanly so it was time to stop. Kamina sauntered up to her slow, plastering a wide Kamina-grin to his face and saluting her in a mock fashion.

She nodded to Leeron, who was already headed back the other way. Sliding the rifle off of her shoulder, she looked up to Kamina. He felt her eyes drift across his left shoulder and the bandages that wrapped up his midsection. As their eyes locked, his smile faded just a bit.

"I showed you before with arrows, but these anti-material rounds pack a bit more of a punch." She pressed the butt of the rifle against her shoulder and looked down the scope to the wide, barren expanse in front of them.

He wanted to return the comments Leeron had said about her boobs, but hesitated… and kept his silence about him. He moved behind her and studied a bit before picking the rifle from her hands and awkwardly setting it up on his good arm. The butt felt snug, the pink strap immasculating but he ignored it. Working his hand onto the grip, he pressed a finger to the trigger and pointed it outwards.

She watched curiously, at several points stopping herself from helping him and backed up, uneasy and not knowing if he wanted her help or not. When he finally got it, she gave a playful applause. "Easy enough, right? Try firing it." She flicked the safety off and took a step behind him, arms settling on the middle of her back. Through the bandages she felt the tension in his muscles settle and smiled a bit.

A blast of blue and yellow light hurled out of the gun, a loud bang sounding off from the rifle. He was pushed backwards but Yoko supported him well enough, only sliding back a few steps. He turned around with a wide grin on his face and she smiled sheepishly. "You're a natural. We'll have to go out on a hunt one of these days."

He pulled the gun back and shouldered the gun where he could before drawing her into a tight embrace. She kept her arms at her sides for a moment before drawing them around him and sinking into the hug. He'd made a promise to her before, ten times better or was it one hundred? It didn't really matter, this would have to suffice for now. Taking in her sent, he sunk into the warm embrace and heard her start to weep.

"I thought you were dead, Kamina. We all did. I'm… I'm glad you're alive." She took a step back and looked at him, eyes glittering from the tears.

He pressed his forehead against hers and she laughed a bit before closing her eyes. The two of them stood there for several minutes before the sound of rushing water exploded around them. He stepped away suddenly, eyes narrowing and she looked over to the water exploding around them. As the waves looked to overtake the ship, he tossed her the gun and grabbed the sword he had moved to his hip. Slamming the sword hard into the deck, the steel pierced it and found a snug hold.

She wrapped her arms around his waist as he grabbed onto the sword and held firm as the wave overtook them. As the water settled, the two of them stood in the same spot, water dripping from their clothes and hair. At the far end of the ship stood a massive winged gunmen, the mouth… on its crotch starting to speak. "I've returned, just like I promised I would you stinking human bastards."

Kamina spat out some water and pulled his sword free, resheathing it as Kittan, Simon, Nia and Dayakka ran out onto the deck. "It's Adiane!"

Yoko dropped back, giving Kamina a longing look before running to the upper decks for a good perch. Kamina took a few steps back, holding onto his sword and edging back into line with Kittan and the others.

"Good to finally see you out here, Kamina."

He responded with a nod before a loud scream sounded out. "Are you filthy humans ignoring me?" The crotch-mouthed gunmen began bellowing at them and Kamina realized he had ignored the bellowing voice. With a shrug, he pointed his sword at Adiane… and spoke.

"Who the hell do you think you are, landing on my damn ship?"

"You… insolent little bastard! How dare you talk to me that way?"

"B-Bro… don't piss her off," Simon stammered, lifting a hand at him.

"I'll go with her, Bro!" Nia said, heading up to Kamina's side. "I need to talk to my father anyways."

"No one's going anywhere," Kamina said, slamming his sword into the ground again. Reaching into his right pocket he pulled out a pair of orange sunglasses and adorned them to his face. "I don't know who you are but I know that you piss me off! Now get the hell off my ship before I kick your ass!"

The giant crotch-face suddenly shifted into a crab-looking thing, large claws dropping around Kamina and his sword, hurling the others back. "You talk to one of the four generals like that and expect not to die?"

Four generals, like Thymilph. A chill ran down his spine and he began to sweat, fear seizing him down to his very core. "Y-You don't scare me."

"Oh… I see. It was Thymilph who took your arm, isn't it? And you killed him, didn't you!" A large scorpion tail shot from behind it and honed in on Kamina, looking to end his life quickly. Several shots rang out and sent the tail flying.

Yoko cocked the gun down and fired on the claws, sending them scattering. Kamina took his chance at this time and ran, sprinting backwards towards the shuttle bay as several gunmen erupted from the door in his defense and to fight Adiane. Nia remained behind, stunned and staring up at them. Kamina grabbed her under his good arm and hauled ass, slipping past the gunmen and met Leeron head on, their heads colliding, stumbling and falling backwards. Nia let out a whimper as she hit the deck, turning over and looking at 'bro' and Leeron. "Damnit, Leeron!"

"Oh, you're speaking!" He rubbed the red lump on his forehead and shook off the pain before pulling a large rifle off of his back. Inlaid with red and orange, it gleamed in the bright sun. "Here, it's just a prototype but it should work well enough!" He grabbed Nia's hand and hauled her backwards as Dayakka's large blue gunmen trounced out, looking at Kamina.

"Are you okay, Kamina!"

"Get me up to where Yoko is!"

Dayakka scooped Kamina up and tossed him upwards. As he flew through the air, he pulled the gun across his chest and grabbed hold of the ledge with his free hand. Yoko scrambled to the ledge and grabbed hold of him, helping to haul him up the rest of the way. Once on his feet, he stood up next to her and went through the strenuous process of putting the prototype to his shoulder and pointing it to the general's gunmen that hung in the air.

Pointing the gun at it, he fired. A giant shell shot out and sent him backwards onto his ass with a yelp. The bullet hit head on and flung her into a spiral in the air before the lot of them fell to the ground and took their brawl out of range. Kamina scrambled back to his feet and ran to the ledge, trying to get an eye on the fight. Rossiu was in Gurren… and it made him twitch for a bit, but the fight was out of his hands.

As the ship began to move and join in on the offensive, he hung on Yoko for some sort of balance. It wasn't exactly easy and they ended up on the ground as something propped a foot up and sent a rumble through the ship. "What the hell? Did she stop it!"

Viral's voice rang out and that cold sweat gleaned his body again. That fear returned and he seized up, hyperventilating and staring intently at the ground. He threatened Gurren, thinking he was in it but saved Adiane. The two of them fled but that fear remained, wrapping around him like a snake.

Yoko began to shout his name, running to his side and gently shaking him. He gasped and wanted to scream, nails chipping as he dug into the metal floor. That fear… that voice…

His entire left side began to ache.


End file.
